Nitrogen returns in the Beldame Stakes, with the Breeders’ Cup as her main objective
The champion filly of last season will resurface this Friday at Belmont Park following her remarkable runner-up performance behind Sovereignty in the Whitney Stakes (G1). Mark Casse made no secret that the main objective is to arrive at full strength for the Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1) at Keeneland
ELMONT, New York (Special for Turf Diario).— After stepping up once more against the nation's top males and emerging from such a stern test with her reputation enhanced even further, Nitrogen now returns to her own division. The champion filly will be the star attraction this Friday in the Beldame Stakes (G2-1800m, dirt, $250,000), one of the signature events of the new meeting at Belmont Park and the stepping stone chosen by trainer Mark Casse en route to the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1).
The daughter of Medaglia d’Oro has not raced since August 8, when she finished second to Sovereignty (Into Mischief) in the Whitney Stakes (G1) at Saratoga.
Far from playing a supporting role, Nitrogen went straight to the front and set a blistering tempo. She posted fractions of 23.43, 46.27, and 1:09.65, holding the lead into the upper stretch before yielding only to the reigning Horse of the Year, who eventually cleared her by 4 3/4 lengths.
Behind her came horses of genuine class, including Antiquarian (Preservationist), Baeza (McKinzie), Magnitude(Not This Time), and White Abarrio (Race Day).
Her effort earned a 105 Beyer Speed Figure and reaffirmed what is no longer a surprise: Nitrogen can compete against virtually anyone, regardless of surface or sex.
“I was extremely proud of her last time out. I was a proud parent,” Casse said. “I didn’t train her extraordinarily hard for this race. Obviously we want to win the Beldame, but our main goal is the Breeders’ Cup. I think she’s in a good spot and ready.”
Nitrogen turned in two workouts following the Whitney at Saratoga before shipping to Belmont, where on September 12 she breezed half a mile in 49.62 to get acquainted with the new main track. “She’s doing great and handled Belmont very well, so we’re ready,” Casse noted.
The Beldame forms part of the Breeders’ Cup Dirt Dozen series and will offer the nominated winner a $30,000 credit toward entry fees for the Distaff. The runner-up will receive $15,000 and the third-place finisher $7,500.
For Nitrogen, however, the ultimate prize lies further ahead. Her 2026 campaign was mapped out around the Breeders’ Cup, and thus far she has maintained the high caliber that earned her Champion 3-Year-Old Filly honors last season.
She launched her campaign with a victory in the Bayakoa Stakes (G3) at Oaklawn Park before delivering one of the most dominant performances of her career in the Ogden Phipps Stakes (G1), where she romped by 12 3/4 lengths while earning a career-best 113 Beyer.
Then came the challenge of the Whitney, and now it is time to face her own sex once again. “She’s gotten better with age,” Casse explained. “She’s an amazing mare when you consider the success she’s had on both turf and dirt, and how she’s been able to stack up against some of the best horses in the country. She’s done it all. We just need her to keep it going.”
A Champion Born on the Turf
The story of Nitrogen carries a unique twist that renders her résumé all the more impressive. Before establishing herself as one of North America's premier dirt runners, she had carved out her reputation on the grass.
At age 3, she captured the Florida Oaks (G3), Appalachian Stakes (G2), and Edgewood Stakes (G2). Her first attempt on dirt came almost by accident, when the Wonder Again Stakes (G3) was rained off the turf at Saratoga.
The outcome reshaped her campaign: she galloped home by 17 lengths. She returned to the grass once more, dropping a agonizing nose decision to Fionn (Twirling Candy) in the Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes (G1), but her last eight starts have all come on dirt.
On the main track, she captured the Alabama Stakes (G1) and concluded her sophomore season with runner-up finishes in the Spinster Stakes (G1) at Keeneland and the Breeders’ Cup Distaff (G1) at Del Mar, a campaign that ultimately secured her divisional crown.
Bred and owned by D.J. Stable, Nitrogen boasts 8 wins, 6 seconds, and 3 thirds from 17 starts, with earnings approaching $3 million. She is by Medaglia d’Oro out of Tiffany Case, by Uncle Mo.
José Ortiz, her partner in 14 of those 17 outings, gets the return mount and will break from post 4.
Brown Armed with Two Cards
The field features just five runners, though Chad Brown will send out a pair of intriguing rivals to challenge the champion. Lost Horizon, with Flavien Prat aboard, comes off a runner-up effort behind Splendora (Blame) in the Molly Pitcher Stakes (G2), having previously rolled by 8 1/2 lengths in the Serena’s Song Stakes (L).
Her pedigree holds a direct connection to the history of the Beldame. She is by Into Mischief out of the Chilean mare Wow Cat (Scat Daddy), who captured this very race in 2018 when it held G1 status, also for Brown and Peter Brant.
The trainer’s second entrant is Donor Advised, a daughter of Gun Runner making her stakes debut. She returns off a layoff of more than a year, having captured a Saratoga allowance optional claiming event by 4 3/4 lengths to earn a 92 Beyer.
Also in the lineup is Boutwell Time (Not This Time), who arrives on a four-race winning streak and steps up to graded company following stakes scores in the Mrs. Claus Stakes (L) at Parx and the Heavenly Cause Stakes (L) at Laurel Park.
Lika Rolling Stone (Bustin Stones) completes the compact group.
Nitrogen will inevitably command center stage.
The Beldame carries real weight, but Casse leaves no doubt as to which race is circled in red on his calendar. After finishing second in the 2025 Distaff and proving this year that she can look the nation's best males right in the eye, Nitrogen begins the final stretch of a road she hopes will end on October 31 at Keeneland, chasing the one crown that still eludes her.
